Portlandia in my Mouth!

I love Portland.  I love everything about it.  I love the hippies, the hipsters, the parks, the neighborhoods, the livestock in backyards, the food and EVEN! EVEN the babies in the restaurants.  Want to know why???  Because parents aren't so effin uptight in Portland and their offspring know how to act in a restaurant.  Ok...enough of that.

I went to PDX with the MAN this weekend...the very sick man.  He was recovering from the flu and really thought it would get better by the time we got to the city.  Poor guy was sick all weekend, but did as much as he could.  He was a trooper! 

We got there late Friday afternoon and headed to Pok Pok, a recommendation from my friend Heather.  Pok Pok is a Thai restaurant that has this fantastic little set up.  They have outdoor covered seating along with a take-out counter, but if you want to have a seat in the restaurant, you can!  They are known for their chicken wings in fish sauce.  We did not order that.  I don't know why.  I'm upset now that I'm writing this. Pok Pok serves foods found in pubs, homes and the streets of Southeast Asia.  They don't have things like green curry or phad thai on the menu, which is so refreshing!  We ordered the Khao Soi.  It is a Northern Thai mild curry noodle soup made with a secret curry paste recipe (whatever...I hate it when a menu declares something as secret) and house-pressed fresh coconut milk.  It was served with pickled mustard greens, shallots, cilantro, crispy yellow noodles and roasted chili paste.  The soup is a Chiang Mai specialty with Chinese Muslim and/or Burmese origins.  Apparently they are not sure.  The soup was delicious, but heavier than I expected.  It also had this layer of oil on top.  We definitely did not finish it, but took it to go.  We ate the leftovers for dinner.  The soup isn't the best after warming it up. Sorry peeps...no pics.  I was so hungry I forgot.

Next on the list was Zell's Cafe.  

The man kind of got his appetite back so he picked this place.  As soon as you sit, you are served with these magical mini scones and jam...yummy yummy!  So soft and warm.  Loved it!  

I, of course, ordered a bloody mary that had a generous amount of vodka (which it should!) and two olives.  It was pretty good, but nothing special.  I've had better.  

We ended up splitting the eggs benedict.  I thought the potatoes were great, but the man thought they were too salty.  We both agreed though that our poached egg was BARELY poached!  It was so runny...kind of like the egg was just cracked on top of the english muffin.  That was a little frustrating because I LOVE me some poached egg. 

And now to the yummiest meal in PDX!  We met up with my friends Heather, Katie, Kendal, Mel and Papa Binns (Heather's dad) at the Bollywood Theater.  Chef Troy MacLarty (not an Indian!) traveled through India and researched street food.  He did well because it is fantastic!  The overall look of the restaurant is super cute.  There are Bollywood film posters on one wall with a big screen TV playing old films.  Everything else is set up similar to a dhaba in India.  Small tables, benches and chairs.  It was nearly 80 degrees that day so the windows were wide open and the ambience really did feel like a warm afternoon in Delhi.  So for drinks...they have COLD Kingfisher beer, which is nice if you have traveled to India and had to drink luke warm Kingfisher.  They also have this refreshing ginger-lime soda.  It almost tastes like it was fresh pressed by the juice vendors in Goa!  I later ordered the Pimm's Cup which is just a darroo (alcoholic) version of that.  Everything is served in small plates, but there are three thalis (variety plates): egg masala, chicken curry and another one I can't remember.  OH well.  Our table ordered the following and pretty much ate ALL of it:

fried okra-not soggy at all!  Probably the best fried okra I have ever had!

samosas-typical.  How can you go wrong with India's version of the hot pocket?

chicken kati rolls-Chicken curry wrapped in a roll with pickled onions and cilantro/mint chutney.  Kind of awesome!

chicken curry-Same curry without the wrap served with rice.

egg masala-Pretty damn good.  The egg is perfectly boiled and then fried a bit, soaking in a tomato based sauce.

bhel puri-Might have been the best thing we ordered.  Onions, cilantro, tomatoes, potatoes, chickpeas, puffed rice, topped off with a tangy yogurt and tamarind sauce.

aloo tikki-a pan fried mashed potato patty served with the chickpea masala and chutney.

beets-I've never had beets like this before.  Red and yellow beets roasted in mustard seeds, cumin seeds, coriander and tossed with coconut milk and curry leaves. DAMN GOOD!

parathas-SO BUTTERY and SO GOOD!  Fried bread!

papri chaat-Similiar to the bhel puri but with little crackers.

channa masala-Masala chickpeas...kind of goes with everything.

daal-Lentils, nothing special, but still a good accompaniment.

egg masala thalis-served with the channa masala, rice, yogurt, and daal. 

chutneys galore!

I just got full writing about it.  We all could have used a nice nap after that meal.  But instead we headed off to see Delhi 2 Dublin, an Irish-Indian band!

Last, but not least was our breakfast at Chez Machin.  They are known for their crepes, but I ordered the french toast, mimosa and a cup of coffee.  The french toast thick, but light.  The syrup complimented the texture of the toast.  It soaked in perfectly.  

Mimosa was good...but how do you screw that up?  And the coffee was quite large!  We were able to share some of it.  The MAN ordered some basic eggs, toast, but a crepe on the side.  He didn't seem to excited about any of it, but it's probably because he still wasn't feeling 100%. 

Portland is beautiful.  The people are kind.  Oh, the people!  I forgot to mention that white people are making all these ethnic foods.  I thought I was going to kind of hate it, but turns out I kind of love it. 

This was a long entry...sorry folks!  I will try to keep it shorter next time:-) 

~ Sangeeta